Charm. Lisa Hannigan has it in bucketfuls. An unusual charm, like her unique take on her self-styled “plink plonk rock”. Something homely, warm and very unshowbiz. Whereas her American counterparts might lose themselves in fad diets and obscure activism, Hannigan knits and writes blogs on her favourite recipes. She shouldn’t be a pop star at all. One might be tempted to describe her as being “girl next door”, except nobody really lives next door to anyone this cute and talented.
Until her Mercury nomination Hannigan was mainly known in this country as the “girl who used to sing with Damian Rice” or “the girl whose single was given away free with iTunes”. In the States she’s better known as the girl whose song was on Grey’s Anatomy. Really, though, she’s simply a talented singer on the cusp of becoming a talented songwriter. After being savagely ejected from Rice’s band in 2007, Hannigan returned to her native Dublin to work on her album Sea Sew. The patchwork quilt Hannigan made for the cover somewhat appropriately betrayed a slightly patchy or at least uneven collection of songs which straddle folk pop in the style of Rice and the sort of whimsical “kook pop” beloved of advertising executives and embodied by the likes of Regina Spektor or Feist.
Pieces that on record may seem flimsy take on a floating quality, resting on a voice as rich and complex as a fine burgundy wine Sea Sew hardly gives an idea of her live persona, and by the same token her live performance gives little idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the songs. Hannigan in concert is all about the charisma. Pieces that on record may seem flimsy take on a floating quality, resting on a voice as rich and complex as a fine burgundy wine. And there is the visual dimension. Hannigan claims not to dance, but in reality she does more with less. She moves in jerky half-dances as if manipulated by an enchanted east European puppeteer.
And then there is the band and the instruments. The band comprises multi-instrumentalists, and the instruments include lutes, glockenspiels, bottles, and a giant squeeze box with an illuminated mushroom on top.
Hannigan played Sea Sew in its entirety, the songs being straight renditions of the original and yet at the same time almost unrecognisable. She also treated the Royal Festival Hall to a couple of new songs which showed real development in terms of melody and lyrics. And she showed she could give Cat Power a run for her money with a version of "Personal Jesus" that went beyond her cosy comfort zone to showcase a rarely heard raw quality in her voice. It was a shame that the first of three ovations of the night went to the wilfully whimsical “I Don’t Know”, a reaction which seemed to come as much from a sense of recognition as appreciation. Yet it seemed entirely apt that she received another for the sublime lullaby “Lille” with which she ended the set.
Hannigan surely needs to work on her recording and her production, but there is no denying her talent as a live performer, and her ability to impart her warmth and gentleness. The heavy weather might still be crashing over these windy isles, but, tonight at least, Hannigan brought a sense of calm.
- Check out what's on in the South Bank Centre season
- Lisa Hannigan's website.
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